On June 26th 1812, while Major General Isaac Brock was entertaining American officers at Fort George in Newark (Niagara on the Lake), he received news that a state of war had existed between the Americans and the British since June 11th 1812.

Major General Brock was 42 years old and was an imposing figure at 6’3″. Brock announced the declaration of war to his guests. After saying goodbye and wishing each other well, the Americans departed.

This marked the beginning of the War of 1812. This war would continue for the next three years before it would end.

The commander of the American forces in the Niagara Frontier was General Stephen Van Rensselaer. The Americans had 6,000 soldiers along the frontier while the British had 1,200 regular soldiers bolstered by various militias.

The Americans attacked Fort Niagara (Youngstown, New York) forcing the British to abandon the fort for the safety of Fort George along the western banks of the Niagara River.

Prior to 1909, there was no bilateral international agreement between Canada and the United States pertaining to the diversion, uses and/or pollution of waters along their shared borders of the Great Lakes. Thus there were, for the most part, no rules. The two countries soon recognized the problems associated to this lack of control and regulation and began negotiations to remedy the problem.

Railways have made Niagara Falls more accessible and has increased tourism and industrial purposes to be realized. Small settlements soon appeared near these new railways. Railroad history in Niagara Falls has been a crucial part of the history of this region and still today continues to be a factor in development in Niagara Falls.